Terms of Endearment
by Magnolie
Summary: What if you love someone and can't tell it for she wouldn't understand? - Dastan and Tamina marry as they are supposed to. But when Dastan makes Tamina discover his other, softer side she changes her opinion about him - Cute Dastamina Romance, T for later
1. Terms of Celebration

**Terms of Endearment  
><strong>_  
>to my Isabelle<em>

**1. Terms of Celebration**

There was a kind of rushing outside of her chambers. People were walking from one part of the palace to another, running, screaming and racing.  
>Their steps left insufferable sounds in the halls which echoed all along the way to her rooms.<br>Tamina froze. It was warm, just as usual. But she froze and her skin broke out in goose bumps for a moment. Then it was over.

One of her servants entered the chamber announcing something she did not listen to. She was staring at her mirror, remembering the first words Dastan talked to her in private.  
>They were sweet, and friendly. He would make a good – no, an adorable husband.<br>But she feared it.  
>She feared being locked up in a golden cage within her own palace or his. She feared being someone's wife, and not herself, Tamina, Princess of Alamut.<br>And she feared that love would avoid her forever. And this was her greatest fear.

People had always taught her to be the keeper of the dagger.  
>Not a woman, who would be married happily ever after. And she had accepted it. She accepted it to be alone until the end of her days. But deep inside her heart, she kept a small flame of hope. Hope, that someday, someone would crawl inside her heart and claim space.<p>

"Daydreaming, Princess?"

She startled up.  
>There he was, standing right behind her, grinning into the mirror as usual.<p>

"How dare you Dastan?" she answered furious, letting go of the brush she was holding to strengthen her hair a bit.

"Aren't you busy with the arrangements?"

"Well, I should at least be able to see my affianced on the evening of my wedding." He grinned and bit into an apple, still watching her trough the mirror.  
>They were silent for a while.<p>

"Prince, is there something special you want to talk about? 'Cause if not, I would prefer getting reading to marry you." She grinned maliciously and crossed her arms above her blue wedding-garment.  
>Dastan stopped eating and put the apple aside while he grasped her brush with the other hand and started brushing her hair slightly.<p>

"Do you remember what I've told you the day we first met?" He knew she wouldn't be able to answer correctly. But this way time had taken once, before he bumped the dagger into the sandglass had been erased.  
>That time wasn't their time. Now was their time. Everything else was gone, no matter how hard he wished her to remember at least the good parts of their mutual journey.<p>

"Of course." She shook her head. She wasn't stupid.

"And?"

"You told me, that we don't know each other that well, but that there will be a time when we will. You said that you are looking forward to that." A small smile appeared on her lips probably the first today.

"Yes. And tonight, I'm here to assure you of this again. You will have as much time and space as you need and no one will force you or ask things you don't want to do." He didn't look at her silently.  
>For one moment Tamina lost all her fears and sorrows.<br>She was here with him tonight. He was chosen to be her husband and companion.  
>And maybe, if she was lucky, the gods would be graceful and he was the one, she would learn to love.<p>

She knew what he meant and nodded.  
>"Fine. So let's get married." He grinned again and she laughed shortly but with all her face and voice. She slapped him softly and looked at him trough her mirror.<p>

Her laughter was the sweetest sound he'd ever heard in his entire life. He couldn't remember her laughing like this during their journey and from this moment on he made it his personal mission to make her laugh like this more often.  
>He was in love with her.<br>He was sure of it for quite a while. He started looking at her in another way during their pause in the middle of the sandstorm. But he couldn't mark the exact time after this day, when he realized that he was deeply in love with this little priss who complicated his life so much.  
>When he saw her again on the throne, knowing that his brother was about to ask her to marry him, it broke his heart. Having her by his side, but never really belonging to her would have killed him.<br>So he was most thankful man in the world when he recognized that Tus had something different in mind than marrying her himself.

And now there were here, in the early evening of the wedding day. Not knowing what future might bring but with certain, strong feeling it couldn't be too bad.

The servant entered the room again disturbing the comfortable atmosphere which had been developed between the young adults. Dastans presence was asked by his brothers, and so he bowed, smiled at his fiancée and left the room.

Tamina was alone again, looking into her mirror. She sighed.  
>This was crazy.<p>

The wedding was a rather big and exuberant festival attended by many partisan aristocrats, governors and merchants.  
>Tamina didn't get see her husband that often after the ceremony had ended. She looked at the drinking and eating, celebrating and laughing crowd sitting on a couch at the sidelines of the fest together with her servants and some other women, new and old relatives she had never come to see before.<p>

She got more and more bored by the not ending turmoil and noise. She tried to look out for Dastan, but wasn't able to find him between all the people. A little lost and tired she stood up and stretched her legs under the long dress. She was wearing a golden crown that was extremely tweaking her scalp. Suddenly she felt uncomfortable and tense. I disliked what she saw: Men, drinking and eating in the holy halls of her city, Persian men, disgusting men.

She guessed this was exactly how Dastan liked it. How all Persians like it: Huge feasts with never ending alcoholic drinks and food. She was sure he was enjoying it a lot.

Tamina left the scenery in a hurry, leaving all the celebrating people behind her. She didn't even hear much them after servants had closed the heavy doors of the main hall behind her and she was pleased be the silence of the floors. She didn't turn around only once.

Her chambers were deserted. She had asked the attendants to leave and attend the festivity for she would have her chambers for her own. She very seldom had time to share alone though this was something she definitely enjoyed during her sometimes stressful all-day-activities. She let herself fall on her feathery bed and let out a loud sigh while she closed her eyes and tried to think of nothing.

"Someone else who isn't that much into celebrating a lot."

She startled up within a second just to find her husband sitting on the steps to the balcony. He grinned and deposited his cup of wine next to him on the second step then he turned to her.

"What are you doing here, this is your bash out there." She asked.

"It's also yours and you're here too." He grinned again.

"Das-tan!" she said with an angry and annoyed sound in her voice.

"I don't like that. I mean, I once liked it but now it is just… drinking men celebrating something that the main person of their celebration doesn't even enjoy." He didn't look her in the eyes when he told it. It was true. Celebrating wasn't what he was up to during the last few days. He still felt a bit dizzy and left alone with a lot of questions about the sandglass and the dagger, time and Tamina of course, even if he tried to hide it.

Tamina was stunned. She had waited for another silly joke, but this honesty was so unusual.

"So I took a bit of everything," He raised a bowl filled with grapes from his other side and pointed at the wine he had taken, "and searched for a nice place which appeared to be the last step to your balcony."

Tamina slowly moved towards him, taking of her heavy crown and placing it on a chair next to her bed. She then settled down opposite him on the steps and took one of the grapes from the bowl.  
>For a while no one said anything. They shared the grapes and looked into the slowly settling sun and the beautiful city beneath them.<p>

"Do you think they'll recognize that the bridal pair is not longer taking part in their wedding celebration?" Tamina grinned after a while.

"No." he just answered and grinned turning his face to her.

* * *

><p><em>Hello everyone.<em>  
>This is my second <strong>ENGLISH<strong> fan fiction.  
>As you surely have mentioned, I'm not a mother-tongue speaker and I'm so sorry for all the mistakes. I read through this story three times and hope that there aren't that many mistakes.<br>I've written many German fan fictions for the German pendant-website to this; so I'm used to fan fictions but not to English ones. I love your language and this is a good way to practice some writing skills ;)

I hope you enjoyed this and will keep reading the following chapters.  
>If you have any questions and corrections, please feel free to ask me.<p>

Greetings, _Magnolie_


	2. Terms of Sleeping

**2. Terms of Sleeping**

They sat there for longer than an hour until sun had hid itself behind the horizon. Only tenuous sunbeams glimmered in the distance of the endless-appearing desert behind the city, enlightening the sky one last time before nightfall. Stars and moon were slowly appearing above them and the air got colder.

The fountains downstairs in the gardens made their wonderful monotone sounds while a soft breath of air shook the trees and bushes making Tamina freeze for a second.

She and her husband had watched leaving horses and their lords without sharing any conversation only eating the grapes from the bowl. They had watched birds fluttering through the air and feeding their chicks.  
>When the sun had reached her face during its journey, Tamina had closed her eyes for a while. She had enjoyed the warmth on her cheeks and forehead for a while hoping this moment would last forever.<p>

It didn't.

Darkness came much too fast and the bowl was emptied much too early.

"Do you want me to creep back into the hall to get us new?" Dastan asked when he offered her the last one.

"No. I think I had enough for tonight. Thank you." Tamina rose from where she had seated and stretched her arms and legs again.

"It's late enough I guess." She tried to stay calm and apathetic when she went to her dressing table and put off her earrings and chains.

"If you depend on your wedding night I should probably get ready for it."  
>She signed but did not look at him.<p>

"Wait. Stop." He said with a confused voice. That was quite a fast change of topics.

A little bit amazed but also frightened she turned around.  
>"I'm not a child anymore." She smiled with half of her mouth. "And I don't wish to be treated like one, your highness. I'm perfectly capable of spending a night with the man who is my husband."<p>

"When did we go back to formalities?" he also rose and looked at her questioning. Did he do something wrong? He was actually trying to delay this topic for as long as possible.

"Stop distracting." She cleared her throat while getting rid of her rings and bracelets.

"Tamina," he went a few steps towards her and stopped in front of his wife not entering her personal space "I won't force you to do anything you don't want, I thought we talked about that earlier today."

"I am not a child Dastan. Don't fear you'll break anything if you touch me." She sounded a bit upset. What was he thinking of her? Was she too ugly? Or too fat?

Dastan groaned loudly and rolled his eyes. There she was back again. This was the Tamina he loved but also hated more than anything else. He actually had missed the bickering between them, but he withdrew this thought after her next words.

"Or is this about you not being man enough?" she grinned spitefully and shifted her weight unto her left leg. "I would understand it, I mean…" she teased.

"Thi-is is about none of us ha-having no problems with anything!" Dastan's cheeks had turned red and he started stammering again just as he did when she had confronted him of not being able to turn his eyes off of her in the valley of the slaves.

"Of course Dastan. I totally understand you, your highness." She grinned mischievously and turned away again to grip her sleeping robe and to disappear behind the separating wall in a corner of the chamber. She took of the wedding gown and placed it carefully on her chair.

Dastan remained silent for a while until he pressed "I'll sleep on your carpet, your royal highness." Trough his teeth and set down on the steps again, waiting for her to get ready.

She looked so beautiful when she left the corner. She was wearing a long, white night robe made out of silk and her hairs were open and long. And it was scenting sweet like lavender and fruits. He could smell it even ten steps away from her.  
>This was probably once meant to attract him but he tried not to look at her while she was crossing the room. He had sworn to himself not to touch her until she truly wanted him too. Not for he was her husband but for being the man she loved.<p>

"Are you sure?" she asked before bringing him his bedding and a few extra pillows.  
>He just nodded and took them thankfully.<p>

"You don't have to do this." She repeated herself again but he was already making himself comfortable on the floor.

"Your choice."

She knew that spending the night at his own chamber would have meant making the gossip factory work overtime: A husband spending the wedding night in his own room? No way. She would have had accepted him sleeping next to her. She would have had slept with him if he had asked her to but she also recognized the sweetness in what he was doing. She had heard many things about Persian men and their brutality. But Dastan seemed to be totally different. He was… sweet and caring.

She thought about asking him to sleep next to her for a moment but she didn't want to show any weakness, so she just closed the curtains and went back to her big and empty bed lying down on her usual side.

"Is that how it's going to be, you, sleeping on my floor?"

"Yes." He said, also changing his clothes behind the separating wall. She could see his silhouette because of a light he had taken there so see better in the darkness.  
>His body looked stunning. She could easily recognize his well trained muscles when he changed.<p>

He appeared again only moments later wearing white linen trousers but nothing to cover his torso. She could see his scars before he douse the small light of the oil lamp and the room returned to darkness. She heard him sneaking across the room and stopping aside her bed. He leaned forward and placed a soft kiss on her forehead and his right hand on her cheek. He stayed in this position for about a moment until he was gone again.

"Sleep well, my princess." Was the only thing he said before he returned to his auxiliary bed, making almost no further sounds.

Tamina shivered. Her skin broke out in goose bumps for a moment as if a cold breeze had touched her suddenly.  
>This had been their first kiss. A sweet, gentle one. She smiled and turned on her side to find a good position to sleep.<p>

"Good night, my prince."

* * *

><p>Hello again.<br>For my holidays are fortunately not over yet I have enough time to write.  
>It wasn't that easy to write this chapter. I wanted them to banter but that much.<br>I think I found quite a nice way to do it hopefully you liked it too.  
>She really is going to drive him crazy (for her) XD<br>Again, sorry for all the mistakes, please inform me, if there are some capital ones _!  
>And please leave a comment :)<p>

_Magnolie_


	3. Terms of Freedom

Terms of Freedom

The first days went by more than quickly. Tamina and Dastan used to spend their days in the gardens or in the palace. They tried to play games and to stay calm for a while but this turned out to be more difficult than they thought. Tamina performed her duties at the temple and Dastan sat together with his brothers to discuss further political and economical arrangements concerning Alamut.  
>But sometimes the royal couple just went to the stables and helped caring for the horses and when no one else was there to see them; they even saddled them and went on short trips.<p>

It was about a week after their wedding day and sun hadn't even come up when Tamina was woken by a soft noise in her chamber. She sat up and looked around when she found Dastan next to her door. He showed her to be silent and came to her bedside only a few seconds later.

"What is it Dastan? We're in the middle of the night!" she asked a bit angry and weary.

"The door to the stables is unguarded. What do you think about sunrise and a small breakfast in the desert?" he smiled and showed her his bag, filled with Persian sweets and fruits.

Tamina was totally awake immediately and got out of the bed on the other side as quickly as she could.  
>"Wait a minute; I'll get myself something to ride."<p>

She looked wonderful in her nightgown.  
>The moon was still shining in the sky and the whole room was filled with its glimmering light when she disappeared behind her separating wall carrying a brown top and long, white line trousers.<p>

When he heard her changing, Dastan slowly stood up from her bedside and followed her with silent steps. He had felt the need of wanting to be a bit closer to her more often during the last days and stopped right in front of the wall. Dastan touched it gently as if it was Tamina herself. The last week had been beautiful but he still missed her. It still wasn't the same. He lowered his head and closed his eyes, imagining the beautiful woman behind the wooden thing.

"What are you doing my prince?" she asked a bit frightened and soft when she left the corner and saw him standing there. He looked sad. 

"Dastan, still." He responded smiling "I thought we discussed that."

"Well then, is everything alright, Dastan?" a gloomy feeling was crawling into her heart from somewhere she couldn't tell. Seeing him like this made her sad too, and she didn't know why.

"Of course, let us go." He offered her his hand and she took it in a weak second.

Together they sneaked through the floors and halls of the palace from the highest level where Taminas chamber was situated, down to the stables of the horses, always alarmed of any guards and attendants who could have disturbed or hindered them.

They had already reached the ground floor when Tamina stumbled was close to fall on the ground. Her husband caught her, preventing her from being discovered by a guard who was crossing their way during his circuit.

Suddenly Tamina found herself being pressed to Dastan's chest, feeling his heart beading fast against her own. He had put his arm around her waist holding her close to him while the man walked by. She breathed hard but silent against his upper body feeling the warmth of his torso and smelling his wonderful scent. He smelled like warm sand and fresh pressed grapes. Tamina closed – in another weak moment as she told herself later – her eyes and tried to enjoy it to be that close to someone.  
>She hadn't been for too long.<p>

He didn't move. When he felt how comfortable she made herself, lowering her head and breathing more slowly, a small smile appeared on his mouth and he also lowered his head until his mouth touched he soft hair and kissed it slightly. They stood there for more than two minutes, not shaking, not moving until he opened his eyes and raised his head. Sun would rise in about an hour and if they wanted to be in the desert by then, they had to go now.

They didn't need a word. It wasn't far from now, just an old wooden stairway and a few doors until they stood at the end of the giant royal stable. No one was there. Two stable lads were sound asleep in the straw when Tamina and Dastan made their way to Tamina's favorite horse a beautiful, black Persian horse named Caspar, the Persian word for treasure.

The saddled it quickly and guided it out of the stables silently. Dastan mounted first not without his wife disagreeing.

"Why do you want to sit in front again? I'm able to ride!"

"And why do you have to disagree with everything I do?"

"I'm not a stupid Persian maiden, Dastan. You've married an Alamutian princess I can speak for myself and I'm able to ride." She screamed silently.

"I know!" he screamed back at her, not thinking of what he'd just said.

"How can you know? You have always been the one riding the horse sitting in front of me when we went on a trip during the last week!" she crossed her arms.

"I…I…You…"

"Yes, I'm listening Dastan."

"Get on the horse!"

Tamina swore something he did not understand and mounted. After she had found a proper way to sit and put her arms around him, he broke the horse and they started their early-morning-field-trip.

Caspar was one of the fastest animals in the stable and his gallop was like a soft jumping without any interruptions. They rode that fast for more than 30 minutes. Caspar was a delivery horse that was trained to ride that fast for over two hours. But when Tamina and Dastan had reached a high sand dune Dastan stopped Caspar to dismount. His wife had held him for the last half an hour and he had enjoyed her soft breathing next to his ear.

The horse was heavily panting and bathed in sweat but it let them dismount easily.

Sun was slowly coming up behind the far horizon while the young adult took their seats next to the horse and watched it.

Her hair where rumpled up but she looked as beautiful – maybe more – as at the palace. She was also panting a bit and smiling brightly when he looked at her for a moment.

It took the sun nearly 40 minutes to rise. The desert was filled with a warm and pleasant light and the sand was glimmering softly. They shared their sweets and didn't say anything until the light had reaches them.

"Thank you Dastan." She said silently.

"Thank you."

She looked at him, confusion in her eyes.  
>What was this mood again?<p>

"Thank you for marrying me and for being my companion." He smiled and nodded.

"I had to, you brother nearly forced me to." She grinned and soon they both shared a laugh.

"I'm looking forward to a life with you my princess, and I hope you are not feeling forced to share it with me."

She didn't answer for a moment.

"I'm not. I just haven't found my niche yet. I know it's been a week now but I still need a bit time." She swallowed and looked at him a bit shyly. Tamina felt horrible. He had brought her out here, was in love with her and was waiting patiently. And what about her? She was asking him for more time. What was she afraid of? Losing power? Freedom? Him?

"I thought the meaning of 'as much as you need' was obvious." He grinned at her.  
>He was thankful for every smile.<br>"Let us stop talking about this, please."

She took his hand.

Just like this she took his hand and kissed it.

"Thank you again." His wife smiled and squeezed his hand one more time before letting it go.


End file.
